You might be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t enjoy looking through old pictures (I did not say looking through someone else’s vacation pictures). However, it is almost equally as difficult to find someone who enjoys getting their picture taken. Selfies excluded. I have a tendency to stick my tongue out at the camera - mature, I know. I have other family members whose gestures equal the most commonly used cuss word when being asked for a picture. (Value bomb: don’t ask. Just say, “Pose for a picture." Or just take a candid - those are the best anyway.) And I have clients cancel their appointments, as the anxiety is just too much.

However, when someone asks for a picture of you, it’s a huge compliment. Whether it’s Grandma wanting a family portrait or your boss asking for an updated headshot, the request comes from a place of admiration. 

My photographer Jenny and I recently took pictures at the Bader House, a long-term memory care facility in Plano. Even though family members prefer to think of happier times, when they received their Christmas gifts of smiling portraits, many shed tears of joy.

Indeed, it was a joyful occasion. 

Joyful for the residents:

The day prior to picture day, they had their nails done and were showered and shaved to be fresh for the next day. After breakfast, they were dressed in their best attire. The beautician came to comb and spray those gray locks, and the staff applied lipstick and blush. The ladies and gentlemen enjoyed being pampered, and they knew one thing for certain - today was special.

When it came time to pose for the camera, the reactions varied. Someone whom I know very well has always despised having his picture taken. However, he danced for and flirted with my camera, then hung out to watch Jenny and me for the remainder of the morning. And, although many reacted to the tune of “Why would you want pictures of this ugly thing,” through compliments, music and getting to know each person, everyone cooperated. 

Not all smiled, but everyone made eye contact with the camera, donning pleasing facial expressions. Some even “Vogue”-d it up Madonna style. (Go ahead, YouTube the song, and strike a pose. You're welcome.) Caregivers, photographers and residents alike smiled, laughed, awwwwed, and shed tears of joy.

Joyful for the photographers:

Jenny, who has worked for Photography by Misty for 10 years and has been a photographer with us for 5 years, told me the next week that working with our Plano friends was the most fun she’s had on a photoshoot. Typically, Jenny’s faves are high school seniors (mine, too) with the rest of their lives ahead of them. It just goes to prove that all stages of life are endearing.

And, while within minutes of their modeling time, most didn’t remember the experience, I have no doubt we made their days a bit brighter. I am there every week, and one resident I do not recall meeting until that day. She normally stays in bed. Maybe I’m just making things up in my head, but now during most visits, I see her out and about. 

Whether the joy lasted the 5 minutes we were photographing or is sweetly stored in their brains, the experience will live on in the photographs we created.